


Stitches

by trysomecats



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: AU, Angels, Cuddles, Fluff, M/M, Phanfiction, Teenagers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-13
Updated: 2015-08-10
Packaged: 2018-04-09 05:44:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4336124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trysomecats/pseuds/trysomecats
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Phil is an angel that devotes himself to fixing “broken” humans. Dan is a little freaked out when the new boy at his school insists on “stitching him back together”.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Dan loved Fridays.

School had just ended, which meant he could now escape the dreary brick building and go back home to his music and video games, sheltering himself in the comfort of his room until Monday came. All he had to endure now was the ten minute walk home, and then there would be no worries for the next 42 hours.

“Dan Howell?”

A hand came flying out of nowhere and landed on his shoulder, causing him to jump about a foot in the air. Nobody ever talked to him anymore, not that he minded. Everyone had basically just given up on him and no longer made an effort since he pointedly avoided all social confrontation.

Turning around, Dan came face to face with another boy whom he instantly recognized. It was Philip Lester, the northern kid who had started school here today. Honestly he was pretty cute with his black hair, bright eyes, and wide grin.

Dan should have expected this. All day Phil had seemed unnaturally close by. They were in all the same classes together, and whenever Dan looked over, Phil was already staring at him with this creepy watchful gaze. It was also strange because nobody else seemed to think he was weird, despite the obvious staring.

“Um,” Dan swallowed nervously, taking a step back as to get rid of the hand that was still clamped down on his shoulder. “Yes…and you’re Phil?”

Phil grinned, removing his hand but stepping closer to him. “That’s right. Sorry I didn’t talk to you earlier. There were just so many people, you know?”

No, Dan didn’t know, but he played along. “Um, sure?”

“Anyways,” Phil said, “I’m here to stitch you back up!”

Okay, now he was a bit freaked out. “Excuse me?”

Phil’s smile faded a bit. “Oh sorry, am I coming off to strong? I don’t get to talk to humans that often, so I guess I’m just excited to be here. Let’s try this again…”

Dan watched, body frozen, as the other boy took a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket.

“Dan Howell, age sixteen” Phil read, supposedly from the paper. “According to these charts, your happiness level is only thirty percent, self-value twenty two, confidence thirty five…all of these numbers are way too low, which is why I’m here.”

Forget being freaked out, Dan was now terrified, so he began to walk away. “Look, I don’t know who the bloody hell you are or what you think you’re doing, but you’ve got issues. So if you don’t mind, I’m going to go now-”

“I’m coming with you,” Phil said in determination, falling into step with Dan. “The papers are never wrong, and I’ve been watching you to confirm it. You’re being stitched whether you like it or not.”

Dan began to pick up his pace. “What the hell does that even mean? Get away from me!”

Phil obviously wasn’t getting the memo, as he latched himself onto Dan’s arm. His hold was tight, but it wasn’t painful. “I’m not leaving you until we get those levels back up. You’re mine now Dan, and I’m gonna take good care of you, I promise!”

As much as he struggled, he couldn’t break the hold that Phil had on him. The road he was on was practically empty too, so it’s not like anyone could come to his aid. Besides, Phil wasn’t exactly dragging him anywhere, he just wouldn’t let go.

Dan considered it for a moment, and then kicked Phil roughly in the shin.

The black haired boy didn’t even flinch, he just kept smiling.

“Daniel, you shouldn’t kick angels,” Phil chided gently. “It could be counted against you.”

Dan fainted.

A hand was running through his straightened locks, shushing and cooing at him. Dan groaned and rolled over, but then realized that his head was in somebody’s lap. Then everything came rushing back to him, and he quickly opened his eyes.

He was greeted by two blue orbs gazing down at him. Or were they blue? They definitely had some green as well, and maybe some specs of gold…wait a second, he was getting off track!

“Get away from me!” He hissed, rolling quickly off of the other teen. He realized rather shockingly that he was on his own bed. “What…how did we get here? Why are you in my home? How do you know where I live?!”

Phil laughed. “Well I’m going to live here too now. Besides, I told you the papers never lie, they gave me directions to our house.”

Our house? Dan blanched at those words. His mind still wasn’t able to properly process this information, but he managed to gain composure for the moment at least.

“I don’t understand what you’re trying to say…surely you have your own family?”

“You’re my family,” Phil told him earnestly, resting his hand on Dan’s chest. “But don’t worry, your parents won’t be able to see me. I only make myself seen when I want to be, and I know how weird they’d think this is….but they’re hardly around anyways, are they? Is that partly why your happiness is down so low?”

Dan gripped his hair in frustration. “I don’t understand any of this. How do you know that? Where did you get these “papers” on me? And are…are you really an angel?”

“I’ll help you understand, the papers tell me anything I need to know about you, they were given to me by the Readers, and yes.”

Dan blinked in confusion before realizing that Phil was answering his questions in order.

“This was not how I imagined my weekend going…”

It was very hard to ignore the supposed “angel” sitting at the table and watching intently as he prepared the mix for pancakes. It was turning dark outside, but he didn’t expect his parents home until late, seeing as they usually went out to parties or bars with their work friends to celebrate the weekend.

Pancakes were always a good meal, even if they were a breakfast food. Besides, cooking gave him a distraction, even if it was an uncomfortable feeling being watched as he did so.

“Do you have to keep staring at me?” Dan finally asked irritably.

Phil grinned. “I can’t help it, you’re beautiful.”

Okay, that comment definitely didn’t make his heart beat faster. Dan made sure to face the counter so that the other boy wouldn’t see his flushed face.

“Are you embarrassed?” Phil rose out of his seat. “Don’t feel embarrassed about the truth. The first key to self confidence is acceptance.”

“Look Phil,” Dan said after a moment of contemplation. “Let’s say that maybe I’m starting to believe your story. Why me? There are far worse off people you can ‘stitch’ or whatever the hell you plan to do to me.”

“And there are plenty of other angels to help them,” Phil responded easily. “But I wanted you.”

With that, the blue eyed teen took one of Dan’s hands in his own, squeezing lightly.

Dan was sure that his face was permanently the color of a cherry. “Um…right then.”

“Hey, I can feel some happiness. Does touch make you happy? Is it true that physical contact really helps with that sort of stuff?”

Before Dan could answer, the angel wrapped both his arms tightly around Dan’s neck, pulling him into a hug. Immediately Dan was was filled with the feeling of warmth, sort of like sunshine. It made his stomach feel strange and he was unable to pull out of the embrace.

“It does…” Phil breathed in wonder. “I’m rather new to this, see, but now we’re going in the right direction!”

The rest of the evening, Dan was attacked with surprise hugs and little squeezes and embraces. It had been at first sort of annoying, but the brown haired boy had to admit that Phil was beginning to grow on him. Usually his nights would be filled with loneliness. It turned out that Phil loved anime and video games, catching on how to play them quickly.

That night Phil had no shame in climbing into Dan’s bed and holding him, snuggling tightly under the soft covers. Dan knew by now that trying to escape the angel’s clutches would not happen. Dan couldn’t help but wonder if angels even slept.

“Don’t worry Dan, ‘m gonna stitch you back up completely. You’ll be happy again, just wait and see,” Phil murmured sleepily, burying his nose into the crook of Dan’s neck.

After a moment of hesitation, Dan allowed himself to curl up closely to Phil. For some reason he actually believed what the other was telling him. He’d felt more happy today than any other time he could remember in his life.

Perhaps having an angel around would be nice.  
Maybe being stitched back together wouldn’t be so bad.


	2. Chapter 2

When Dan slowly emerged from sleep, he stretched before opening his eyes, feeling well rested for a change. He briefly considered just dozing back off for a minute or two when he felt a hand run through his hair. Dan’s eyes snapped open and he came face to face with someone whom he had regarded as a dream.

“I love your curls, why don’t you ever go to school like this?”

It seemed like Phil Lester, the supposed angel who was going to “stitch” Dan back together, really wasn’t a figment of his imagination.

“Get off,” Dan shoved at the black haired boy. “God, are you really going to be sticking around here twenty four seven?”

“I have to, you’re under my obligation now!” Phil told him. “At least until we can get your levels back up.”

Dan rolled his eyes and hopped out of bed, padding into the hallway so that he could grab some breakfast. The quiet voices coming from the kitchen meant that his parents were home. He felt Phil’s presence behind him and internally groaned. How was he going to deal with the angel in front of them?

“Daniel,” His mother greeted him as he entered the kitchen. “Did you get on well last night? Your father and I made it back rather late, we were dining with the Andersons.”

“Yeah, I was…..fine,” Dan trailed off, watching in horror as Phil sauntered over to take a seat at the table next to his father, who was reading the newspaper and drinking a cup of coffee.

“We didn’t mean to be out so late,” His mother continued, mistaking Dan’s expression for anger towards them.

Dan’s father looked up from his paper. “Daniel can manage himself dear. He’s practically grown up now.”

His mother opened her mouth to say something when her cellphone went off. She rushed out of the room to answer it, leaving just Dan and his father. The teenager slathered a bit of jam onto his toast and went to return to his room.

“No wonder you’re so unhappy,” Phil spoke up suddenly as he followed Dan back down the hall.

Dan didn’t answer him, shutting the door in the other boy’s face. Unfortunately when he turned around, Phil had just reappeared and was sitting cross legged on his bed.

“C’mere,” Phil opened his arms. “You need a morning hug.”

“No, a morning shower is what I need,” Dan responded, walking over to his dresser to begin picking out his clothes for the day. He was caught off guard when a pair of arms wrapped around him from behind, and Phil’s face was suddenly nuzzling the side of his neck.

“You’re perfect Dan,” The angel murmured happily. “Today we’re going to have lots of fun, I promise!”

Dan felt a weird sensation in his chest, breathing a sigh of relief when Phil let him go.

“Stay here,” He ordered, not wanting the angel to follow him into the bathroom. Once he made sure Phil was seated on his bed, he went across the hall to take his shower.

The hot spray of the water gave him time to think. He definitely wasn’t insane, because Phil had been recognized in school by other students. The angel’s explanation about being seen only when he wanted to made sense, because Dan’s parents certainly didn’t notice another kid in their kitchen this morning.

But there were other questions that Dan still had. First of all, just how long was Phil planning on staying? Dan would never truly be happy, he felt. After all, wasn’t that impossible for anybody? Life just felt so meaningless. In a year or so he would have to make plans for university, and then get some boring job to occupy most of the rest of his life. So what was the point of even being happy?

With a sigh, Dan pulled back the curtain and stepped out….and was in for a surprise.

“It took you long enough! I’ve been waiting for almost an hour.”

“Get out!” Dan shrieked, grabbing a towel off the rack and covering himself quickly. “Get out, get out, GET OUT!”

With a blink of the eye, Phil was gone, but someone knocked on the bathroom door.

“Daniel, what’s wrong? Are you alright?”

“Y-Yes Mother,” He stuttered, regaining composure. “There was just a…um, spider in the bathtub.”

“Alright….”

Dan stayed frozen until he heard her footsteps retreat. He slid into some skinny jeans and a shirt before taking a deep breath and going back to his room.

Phil, who had been waiting, rushed to apologize. “Dan, I’m really sorry! It didn’t occur to me that humans are uncomfortable about that stuff!”

“Just don’t do it again,” Dan said, feeling his cheeks redden. For some reason he didn’t have the heart to scold the other, as he already looked guilt ridden and sorry. Things would have been better if the angel hadn’t of continued to speak.

“You shouldn’t be self conscious about your naked body though. I think it’s beautiful!”

“Alright, that’s enough!” Dan held out his hands. “Stop talking.”

Phil pouted. “But I was complimenting you. Compliments are supposed to bring happiness.”

“Not creepy compliments,” Dan told him, grabbing an xbox controller and sitting at the foot of his bed. “You can play with me if you want.”

“Sure!” Phil looked pleased as he took another controller. “But let’s go out in a bit, okay? Staying inside all weekend isn’t good.”

“What would I possibly do outside? I feel better staying in my room, away from other human beings in particular.”

“That’s the problem,” Phil said with a frown. “All humans need companionship. On Monday we’ll work on getting you some friends. This weekend you need sunshine and hugs.”

“Working on getting me friends? No way!”

Phil seemed pretty serious about the whole thing though, ruffling Dan’s hair and promising to make everything better. After about an hour of video games, Phil convinced Dan that they needed to take a walk. Knowing that he would probably lose the argument, the teen allowed himself to be dragged into the sunshine, but not before straightening his hair.

Both the cars in the driveway were gone, so Dan assumed his parents had taken off. He knew his father had work, and his mother often went to the salon on Saturdays. Dan tensed when Phil held his hand as they reached the road.

“Um…are you invisible to others right now?” Dan asked in a whisper. He certainly didn’t want to be seen by anyone he knew holding hands with a strange boy. People would get the wrong idea for certain.

“I am invisible right now,” Phil told him. “Do you want me to become visible?”

“No, no that’s okay.”

They walked into town, which was actually sort of nice. Phil began telling him random facts about animals, which made him relax a bit. This weekend was definitely weird and creepy, but it was also the most interesting thing that had ever happened to him. Deep down it sort of felt nice to know someone was so concerned about his wellbeing.

Truthfully Dan had been feeling so dark lately. Once in awhile bad thoughts would force their ways into his brain. Sometimes he would look inside the medicine cabinet a little too long, or go carefully through the knife drawer and inspect the sharpest one…but right when things seemed to be at their lowest Phil had shown up.

“Ice cream,” Phil’s voice stirred Dan from his thoughts. “You need to go get some ice cream. Sweets bring happiness as well.”

The angel pointed towards a quaint little ice cream shop at the corner of the street they were on.

“I don’t have any money with me,” Dan said with a shake of his head, though he smiled a little.

Phil winked. “Look in your pocket.”

Dan hesitated before reaching into his pocket. He was startled to feel something, and to his surprise he pulled out ten pounds. “Phil…did you do that?”

“Go get something really yummy,” Was all Phil replied with, nudging Dan into the shop. “I’ll be waiting right outside.”

Dan chose chocolate, topped with sprinkles on a cone drizzled with caramel. It was positively delicious, and when Phil saw it his eyes sparkled. Both of them sat down at a small table outside the shop.

“Let me try some,” Phil leaned over and licked at the treat. Dan rolled his eyes but allowed him, because he was sure the angel had supplied the money for the dessert in the first place.

“Aren’t you feeling good right now?” Phil asked him. “Do you trust me Dan? Do you trust me to stitch you back up again?”

Dan looked back into those beautiful eyes and couldn’t resist smiling.

He slipped his hand into the angel’s warm one.

“Yeah, I suppose I do trust you.”


	3. Chapter 3

On Monday morning, Dan awoke to his alarm clock blasting it’s shrill tone from his bedside table. As he came to, he realized that his newly acquired angel was latched onto him tightly, arms around his torso and legs tangled with his own. It was as if Dan were a human teddy-bear. Dan sighed and moved out of the constricting hold. Just like that, Phil was awake. 

“Good morning!” The angel greeted him cheerfully, not a hint of drowsiness in his voice. 

“Do you even really sleep?” Dan asked tiredly, rubbing at his eyes and turning off his alarm. 

“Not technically,” Phil smiled. “But I just love holding you and pretending we’re sleeping together. You mumble and make such cute sounds...your happy level just skyrockets when we cuddle!”

Dan blushed crimson. “Right….that’s not weird or anything.”

Phil cocked his head to the side. “Huh?”

“Nevermind,” Dan shook his head. “You wait here while I shower. No coming in this time, you just wait on the bed.”

“Okay, have a good shower!”

Shaking his head, Dan left to take a brisk hot shower. Afterwards he felt much more awake, drying his hair and straightening it. He had brought a pair of black skinny jeans and dark t-shirt with him, getting dressed before quickly returning to his bedroom to make sure Phil had done as he was told. 

“Hi Dan,” Phil hugged him a soon as he entered. “I missed you! How was your shower?”

Dan’s mouth quirked in amusement. “I was only gone for twenty minutes. Oh wow….where did you get those clothes?”

“Do you like them?” Phil asked cheerfully. He wore dark skinny jeans and a brightly colored cloud t-shirt, black square glasses included. “This shirt reminds me of home…”

“You look...nice,” Dan told him, face heating. In reality Phil looked a lot better than just ‘nice’. He fell between a mixture of sexy and cute, two very nice combinations. Dan quickly shook his head and straightened. “Right then, let’s go to school.”

“Daniel,” Phil chided. “You need breakfast first.”

The teenager paused. He usually skipped breakfast, except for on weekends. Seven in the morning was just too early for him to consider eating. Phil seemed to see his internal debate and smiled. 

“Breakfast is waiting for you in the kitchen. Hurry while it’s still hot.”

Raising an eyebrow, Dan did as he was told and went into the kitchen. It was empty, seeing as his parents always left for work an hour before he awoke. On the table was a plate stacked with waffles, drenched in sugary syrup and topped with whipped cream and a sprinkle of chocolate chips. 

“Wow, did you make this?” He asked, suddenly feeling very hungry as he took a seat at the table. 

Phil smiled a little secretively. “Sure. Dig in!”

Dan did so, savoring the taste of the warm waffles. Phil sat next to his at the table and watched him closely, a dorky smile adorning his face. 

“Do you have to watch me like that?” Dan asked, feeling self conscious at the fact that he was stuffing his face. 

Phil looked taken aback. “I like watching you eat. It’s cute.”

Dan groaned internally; Phil was the strangest perso- angel, that he had even met. 

“Ready for school?” Phil asked once Dan had cleaned his plate. 

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Dan replied. After all, having to deal with Phil at school, in front of hundreds of other kids, was going to be a hassle. 

…

It turned out that Dan had worried for nothing. All morning Phil had shadowed him during all his classes. The angel has already been posing as a student, so once again he became visible to the public eye as they entered the building. 

Dan had never made an effort to befriend his classmates, but it was nice to actually have someone to talk to during his lessons now. Also, most everyone seemed drawn to Phil due to his sweet and attractive persona, so Dan had to deal with other people since Phil never left his side. 

Around lunchtime, Dan made for his usual table in the back corner of the cafeteria. Phil had disappeared for the time being, and Dan had to admit to feeling mildly disappointed to eating without the angel by his side; that is until Phil reappeared, only he wasn’t alone. 

“Dan, this is Chris and PJ,” He said, gesturing to the two boys whom he held by the arms. “I’ve decided that they’re going to sit with us.”

Dan wanted to open his mouth and explain that you didn’t just ‘decide’ to force people to have lunch with you, but it appeared that neither boy was bothered. 

“Hi Dan,” Chris, who he had first period with greeted him. “You know you could have told us you were lonely, we would have sat with you before.”

Mouth falling open and blushing furiously, Dan glared at Phil. The angel made him sound like some sad hopeless case. 

“You just don’t seem like much of a people person anymore,” PJ added. Dan had hung out with PJ a few times when they were younger, but these recent years he had taken to pushing all of his former friends away. It seemed Phil was fixing this issue fast. 

“I’m not,” Dan said dryly as Phil sat down next to him. Suddenly a warm hand found his thigh under the table and squeezed it reassuringly, and Dan had to hold in a gasp at the sudden move. 

Lunch had actually ended up being quite nice. It was the first school lunch in almost a year that Dan did not spend alone. Chris and PJ were actually both pretty cool, and they told Dan and Phil that they should come over to play video games sometime. Phil enthusiastically agreed to that, and Dan even had to admit that it sounded like fun. 

When the day finally came to an end, Phil took Dan to get ice cream again. It felt strange, being doted on, but Dan found himself enjoying how the day was going. He was so used to being alone. Having a companion felt rather nice, he had to admit to himself. 

It was very hard to get truly annoyed at Phil. He was just so kind and pure, which was why Dan was actually buying this angel business. Three times now Phil had stopped on their trek home to give a helping hand to strangers. He’d helped a dog get his paw unstuck from in between a fence, given a homeless man twenty freaking pounds, and helped a schoolgirl pick up a stack of folders she’d dropped. 

Oh, and Phil had tried to pet at least five squirrels. Try was the keyword here, because they all would scurry away from him, and the one squirrel that hadn’t had tried to bite him. It was amusing to say the least, because Phil was like a five year old who was in wonder with the whole world.   
When they got home, Dan made himself comfortable on the living room couch and turned on the television, ready to wind down from his exciting and eventful day. 

“Daniel,” Phil suddenly chimed excitedly. “Your levels were so great today! Happiness is now fifty instead of thirty! Confidence is forty two..not great, but an improvement! Hmm, your sense of self-value hasn’t changed yet. Why do you hate yourself so much Dan?”

Dan looked at the angel sitting next to him. “Jeez Phil, I don’t know. What even is all this level business? Why is it all so important?”

Phil looked more serious than ever. “Levels are very important Dan. They need to get up to satisfying levels. Let them get too low and...well, it won't be good.” 

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean,” Phil said quietly, bright eyes suddenly watering. “I know what you were going to do on Friday.”

Dan froze. “What the hell are you talking about?”

Phil flinched at the swear. “You were going to hurt yourself. That’s not good Daniel, not good at all. I have to make sure that your levels go back up, and that you start loving yourself again. You deserve to be loved Dan, by everyone. I loved you as soon as I looked at your papers.”

Dan felt himself caught in a swirl of emotions. He didn’t want to make Phil upset. Seeing the beautiful angel so sad was making him equally as sad. Just because he was worthless didn’t mean that he had to make phil suffer with him. 

“I’m sorry,” He spoke with sincerity, laying his head on Phil’s shoulder and wrapping his arms around him; it was the first time he was the one initiating physical contact. 

Phil was instantly nuzzling him back. “It’s okay Dan. I’m here now. I’ll take care of you, I promise. I even made an oath.”

Those words, so soft and reassuring and gentle, comforted Dan immediately. Although fresh tears began to run down his cheeks, he felt more at peace with himself than he had in awhile. 

Dan’s angel wiped the tears away with his thumb and kissed him on the nose, snuggling him even closer. As he drifted off, Dan felt like he was in heaven. 

Or rather, he felt that Phil was his personal heaven.


End file.
